October, democracy in denmark, and competitive poster hanging: The Danish Year Part 10

About this episode

This episode discusses the competitive nature of election poster hanging in Denmark during October and the unique aspects of Danish democracy.

Election posters are a colorful part of democracy in Denmark. In October, the campaigns swing into gear, and when the whistle blows on a set date at precisely noon, teams of poster-hangers cover the country with the faces of their candidates. It's highly competitive; It's against the law to take down posters once they're hung, so there's a big rush to get your party's poster up first. So on that October afternoon, you'll see teams of young people rushing about Copenhagen, Aarhus, and countryside towns with ladders, and hardback posters, and zip ties, and measuring sticks, because all posters must be at least one-and-a-half meters below power lines. There are a lot of young people available to do this because most Danish parties have a youth wing. There are also a lot of young candidates. You'll often see the candidates themselves putting up posters with their own face on them. Danish design in election posters In a country famous for great design, Danish election posters are surprisingly uniform. Every poster features one smiling face, a name, and a party color — and that's it. No slogans, no promises, no policies. What does each candidate stand for? You'll have to look it up…

People in this episode

Host: Kay Xander Mellish

Topics covered

• democracy
• elections
• poster hanging
• Danish design
• youth participation
• political parties

Keywords

• election posters
• Denmark
• democracy
• political parties
• youth candidates
• poster hanging

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Danish parties

Places: Denmark, Copenhagen, Aarhus

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